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Archaeology & History

Oldest image of Jesus found in Egyptian tomb

By T.K. Randall
May 1, 2014 · Comment icon 26 comments

Oxyrhynchus is located on a branch of the Nile River. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 Jerzy Strzelecki
A crypt dating back to the 6th century is home to what is thought to be the earliest depiction of Christ.
Located south of Cairo in the ancient Egyptian city of Oxyrhynchus, the crypt is believed to have served as the final resting place of several writers and priests.

The image of Jesus was discovered by a team of Spanish archaeologists and shows a man in a short tunic with his hand raised up in a gesture as if to give blessings. The depiction has managed to survive over the centuries thanks to a thin layer of paint that covers it.
"We could be dealing with a very early image of Jesus Christ," said Dr Padro who is working with a team of experts to decipher inscriptions on the wall that could help them to identify exactly who the figure is intended to be.

In addition to the Jesus image the tomb has also been home to a great many other discoveries.

"Another exceptional find of the expedition is the tomb of a scriber who was buried together with his working tools: a metallic inkpot which is still full of ink and two new pens for the deceased to write during the eternal life," said Dr Padro.

Source: Yahoo! News | Comments (26)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #17 Posted by Frank Merton 10 years ago
[/font][/color] Okay, sounds like it could be interesting. Nevermind. There are plenty of images of Jesus that predate the sixth century: http://en.wikipedia....iction_of_Jesus Yea -- when I read sixth century I lost interest.
Comment icon #18 Posted by Winter Summer 10 years ago
Nice portrait of a Pretty Boy.
Comment icon #19 Posted by PersonFromPorlock 10 years ago
The image in the Yahoo article is of Justin Beiber playing Jesus. The real image is a lot less distinct and, frankly, not up to Roman portrait standards of the time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fayum_mummy_portraits
Comment icon #20 Posted by hammerclaw 10 years ago
Yep that could be Jesus alright--or somebody's cousin George.
Comment icon #21 Posted by Hida Akechi 10 years ago
As far as we know this could be an alien Okay, NOW I get your purpose here. LOL.
Comment icon #22 Posted by docyabut2 10 years ago
Some man must have been pretty famous to have his portrait with his curly hair on a booklet and on a stone in Egypt. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1372741/Hidden-cave-First-portrait-Jesus-1-70-ancient-books.html
Comment icon #23 Posted by DieChecker 10 years ago
Nevermind. There are plenty of images of Jesus that predate the sixth century: http://en.wikipedia....iction_of_Jesus Maybe it is the oldest image of Jesus found in Egypt?
Comment icon #24 Posted by DieChecker 10 years ago
Some man must have been pretty famous to have his portrait with his curly hair on a booklet and on a stone in Egypt. http://www.dailymail...ient-books.html Those lead books are very interesting. I hope they figure them out someday.
Comment icon #25 Posted by toyomotor 10 years ago
A team of Spanish archaeologists have discovered an image of what they assume is the earliest known depiction of Jesus Christ. I saw something on a beach that I assumed was a sea shell. And it was. Are these people for real?
Comment icon #26 Posted by MysticStrummer 10 years ago
Some man must have been pretty famous to have his portrait with his curly hair on a booklet and on a stone in Egypt. http://www.dailymail...ient-books.html Courage... http://www.harveymackay.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/cowardly-lion.jpg


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